Page 6 of Her Wild Cowboy Billionaire

“Yes, ma’am.”

Willow faced her fear and watched the land below fly by. Cattle were big brown spots in the green landscape. She couldn’t believe how far they had come and so quickly. Before she knew it, she saw a large house made of logs. The log home was the biggest she’d ever seen and was stunningly beautiful.

The building was two-story with a pitched roof that was large enough to have an attic. A covered porch surrounded the entire building.

Huge picture windows were on every side and upstairs, too. That meant the bedrooms would have gorgeous views, since from her vantage point, she didn’t see an unpleasant view in any direction.

“The house is gorgeous.”

“Yes, ma’am,” said the pilot. “Wait until you see the inside.”

The helicopter pad was about fifty yards from the back door of the house.

Jason set them down with barely a bump and then switched the ‘copter off. The rotors gradually stopped spinning, and he climbed out. He came around the front of the helicopter and opened her door. She undid the harness and took his hand to help her out.

Mindy was out of her harness and waiting impatiently for him to open the back door behind her mother’s seat.

When he did, she jumped into his arms. He caught her easily. “There we go, little Miss Adams.”

Mindy smiled. “Thanks, Jason.”

“Any time.” He ruffled her hair.

He turned to Willow. “Let me grab your bags and then we can go inside. I’m sure Travis is waiting.”

“Yes, I’m sure he wants to talk to me. From what Grace said, he wasn’t happy about her hiring me. You might want to start the helicopter and keep it running.”

Jason just laughed. “Are you kidding? He gets one look at you and he’ll hire you on the spot.”

Her face heated. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

Jason stepped away from Mindy and over to her mother. “Willow, he’s a nice guy in pain, stuck at home when he wants to be anywhere else.”

She turned her gaze toward the house. “I don’t know why he wouldn’t enjoy being home. It looks like he has a spectacular home.”

“Oh, he does, but he’s not used to having to be inside all the time.” He retrieved two of the large bags and began walking toward the house.

She and Mindy followed, bringing the rest of their luggage, Willow rolling the large suitcase and Mindy wearing her backpack.

Willow couldn’t believe the size or the magnificence of the house. Living in it was something Willow could only dream of, but she hoped to experience it for a brief period. Long enough, she hoped, for the authorities to find and arrest Gordon Simmons.

They walked on the pea gravel path to the house.

The back door opened, and a pretty, red-haired woman stood in the doorway. She dressed casually in jeans, a long-sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows and a red apron that read...My kitchen...my rules.

“Welcome. Willow and Mindy. I hope you don’t mind the informality. Being informal makes everything so much easier. I’m Claudia, the cook, and the general sounding board. If you have any complaints, let me know, and I’ll take care of them. You concentrate on Travis. He’s pretty mobile, but still needs help with things like bandaging his wound, getting his shots for pain, IV antibiotics when needed and keeping his casts clean. They will come off in less than five weeks and already that seems like a long time away.”

“Hi Claudia. We don’t mind the informality at all. Do we, Mindy?” Willow gazed down at her daughter. The girl was never shy. She’s likely to pester Claudia in the kitchen, wishing to learn how to cook. The Lord only knew Willow was a terrible cook. They’d eaten enough of her dinners to know.

“Nope,” said Mindy. “We don’t mind. Do you have horses? This is a ranch, and a ranch has horses, right? Can you teach me how to ride? I’ve always wanted a horse?—”

Willow rolled her eyes. “Mindy. Hush.”

The child huffed out a sigh. “Okay. I won’t ask questions for a little while.”

Willow let out a deep breath and placed both hands palms up. “What I’d really like is a room to put our luggage in and maybe freshen up a bit.”

Claudia slapped a hand to her forehead. “Of course, you would. Come in.”